


The Surprise Date

by xXdreameaterXx



Series: Arrows of Eros [1]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-09
Updated: 2015-10-09
Packaged: 2018-04-25 15:17:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4965925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xXdreameaterXx/pseuds/xXdreameaterXx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tumblr Prompt: I’m getting hit on by a creep can you please pretend you’re dating me? Whouffaldi.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Surprise Date

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MissWinterseat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissWinterseat/gifts).



Clara was impatiently tapping her foot on the wooden floor while checking her watch over and over again. She took another sip of her drink when finally her phone rang.  
“Where are you? I've been waiting for almost an hour!”  
“Sorry, Clara, I can't make it,” her friend said on the other end of the line, “My boyfriend sprained his ankle. We just got out of the doctor's office.”  
Clara heart sank. She hadn't been keen on a _girls' night out_ in the first place and now she was stuck here alone, but she found it hard to stay mad at her friend under these circumstances. She sighed into the phone.  
“Alright,” Clara said after a while, “Take care of your man and give him my best, okay?”  
“Will do. Hope you still have a nice evening.”

And then the line went dead. Clara stared at her almost full glass, deciding it would be a waste to just leave a rather tasty cocktail sitting here. She would leave after she had finished her drink and the _Cat and Canary_ wasn't a bad pub after all, nicely furnished and it was still early evening, so the chatter around her was still at a bearable level and from her seat she had a lovely view over the water. 

“What's a sweet chick like you doing sitting here all alone?” a male voice right behind her, too close to her own ear for her liking, suddenly said.  
Clara shot around, staring at a young man. She noticed his eyes wander to all sorts of places but her face.  
“I, uhm, I'm actually waiting for someone,” Clara lied. She hated being talked to like that, but she found that it worked better to politely decline their advances than to be rude.  
“Yes,” the man replied, sliding into the seat across the table, “I think you've been waiting for me.”  
Clara laughed. This guy was unbelievable. “Yeah, I don't think so. Please, could you sit somewhere else before my date gets here?”  
“Would you tell me to leave even if I said you were the most beautiful woman in London?”  
“That's, uhm, flattering, but I really am meeting someone, so if you please. . .”  
“What's your name?”  
Clara groaned and as she turned her head towards the door she saw the perfect excuse step inside the pub at that very moment. He was a silver fox, wearing an elegant and expensive looking suite, no ring on his finger – he was perfect. Clara jumped up from her seat immediately.  
“Heeey, there you are,” she said excitedly, “I thought you'd never get here.”  
Clara had approached the stranger, who stared back at her in utter confusion as she laid her hands on his arms and pretended to give him a peck on his cheek.  
Instead of doing that, she whispered into his ear. “Can you please pretend to be my date, that guy over there is not taking no for an answer.”

With a smile on her face, Clara pulled back from him, but the handsome stranger still seemed confused.  
“I'm sorry, I don't think I understand?” he asked, his voice low.  
“That creep over there is hitting on me,” Clara whispered, nodding in his direction, “Can you please sit with me to get him off my back? I promise, I won't bother you.”  
It took him a moment, but after a few seconds the man finally seemed to have understood. He smiled at her.  
“I'm so very sorry,” he said loudly and for everyone to hear, a hint of a Scottish accent in his voice, “Traffic was horrible.”  
“Well, better late than never:”

Clara led him back to her table where the young man who had been trying to flirt with her looked rather flabbergasted.  
“Darling, what's this young man doing at our table?” the stranger asked her, not without a mocking undertone to his voice.  
“I, uhm, I, . . .,” the man spluttered, “I was just. . .”  
“Leaving?”  
“Yes, leaving,” the young man quickly grabbed his jacket and hurried off.  
Clara slid back into her seat while the stranger sat down in front of her, an odd smile on his face and he looked as if he was about to burst into laughter.  
“It's not funny,” Clara said, “He really was annoying. Thank you for saving me.”  
“My pleasure,” he replied, “I'm John, by the way, John Smith.”  
“Clara Oswald, and, can I call you my hero? Seriously, thank you for saving me. I was supposed to meet my friend here but she bailed on me at the last moment. I just wanted to finish my drink in peace when this idiot showed up.”  
“Ach, he's a pudding brain. He can't help it.”  
They both chuckled and Clara sipped her drink as she watched John reach for the menu.  
“Do you want to eat something while you're here? It's on me.”  
“Oh,” Clara uttered, “Nooo, I couldn't. I really just want to finish my drink.”  
“Are you sure?” he raised an eyebrow at her, “It's not gonna look like much of a date if I'm the only one eating.”

She looked at the menu in his hand and had to admit that she did feel a little hungry, but she couldn't have John pay for her dinner after she had forced herself on him like this. Apparently he had sensed her reluctance.  
“Clara, I mean it,” he said sincerely, “If you are hungry, I would love to pay for your dinner. I've had a really bad day at work and my original plan was to go to the nearest pub and get drunk but if the alternative is spending the evening with a lovely woman over a nice meal, I'd prefer that.”  
Clara couldn't help but smile. He was a nice, good looking and appeared to be a true gentleman, so there really wasn't any reason for her to decline.  
“I've heard the chicken wings are really good,” she replied.

Despite the pub slowly getting crowded their dinner didn't take too long to arrive and Clara hungrily bit into her first wing.  
“You were right. They really are good,” John confirmed and Clara had to agree.  
“So, what do you do? For a living, I mean.”  
John shrugged. “I'm a doctor. I'm working just around the corner. And you?”  
“I'm a teacher at Coal Hill school.”  
“Really?” John's eyes widened, “My niece goes to that school. Maybe you know her? Jenny Smith. Red hair, freckles.”  
“Ohh, yes,” Clara smiled, “She's in my English class. Bright little girl. Feisty.”  
He swallowed and cleared his throat. “I pick her up from time to time when my schedule allows it. I don't think I've ever seen you around school.”  
“Maybe you have and you just forgot,” Clara shrugged, giving a short laugh.  
But John's face remained serious. “No, I'd remember seeing you.”

Clara had no idea what to reply to this very obvious compliment.  
“Next time I pick up Jenny, would you mind if I came in to say hi?” John asked.  
She granted him a shy smile. “No, I wouldn't mind.”  
“Would you say hi back?” he chuckled.  
“Oh,” Clara replied, “I think I'd even go a step further and ask you out for a meal to say thank you for this one.”  
She looked around to her empty glass and plate and a glance at her watch told her that it was nearly closing time already. She hadn't even notice the time pass.  
“Well, John Smith,” Clara began, a smile still on her face, “I had a really nice evening and I suspect I will be seeing you soon?”  
“Very soon,” John confirmed, “And thank you for your lovely company. It was definitely the better alternative to getting drunk.”  
Clara giggled as she got up and slipped into her coat. “I'm glad I could lighten your spirits. Good night, John.”  
“Good night, Clara.”

As Clara headed out into the fresh air, she wore a smile on her lips. Tomorrow she would have to thank her friend for standing her up, otherwise she would have never met John Smith and she was already looking forward to seeing him again.


End file.
